Middle East Press On: Israel, Hostage, Tariff, Ballistic, PA, EU: New Age Islam's Selection, 16 April 2025
By New Age Islam Edit Desk
16 April 2025
Could AI be the solution to Israel's ongoing conflicts and division?
How has Israel reached its lowest point through its High Court
How can Israel celebrate its victories when hostages remain in captivity?
Trump's Israel tariffs: What was left unsaid in Netanyahu-Trump meeting?
The crux of negotiations: Are Iran's ballistic missiles more dangerous than its nuclear programme?
Funding the PA is for the benefit of Israel and the EU, not the Palestinians
Gaza’s impossible choice: extermination or forced transfer
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Could Ai Be the Solution to Israel's Ongoing Conflicts and Division?
By Daniel Rowe
April 16, 2025
In our current political climate, we’re locked in seemingly intractable conflicts that pit competing values against each other as zero-sum games.
Take the “culture wars” of American politics. The abortion debate forces us to choose between bodily autonomy and fetal life.
Gun debates position personal freedom against public safety. Religious differences become territorial disputes.
Each side sees victory only in the other’s concession. This is often true in the continually polarizing political sphere as well, as individuals have, in many Western societies, become so wrapped up in their political opinions that it has become part of their identities, and they choose to disassociate with others who have differences of opinion.
However, what if our perception of these conflicts as irreconcilable stems not from their inherent nature but from the technological limitations of our time?
The advancement of AI and other technologies will happen whether we as individuals want it to or not.
Governments will develop it, militaries will advance it, and entrepreneurs will innovate with it. The question isn’t whether technology will transform our society, but how. And who will benefit from it?
We need to harness this inevitable technological development to intentionally create a future where today’s “either/or” conflicts become “both/and” solutions. This requires a process I call “positive visioning,” focusing not on what divides us today but on what we collectively want for tomorrow.
There are some obvious benefits and blessings that new technologies can bring, which all groups can get behind.
Consider mental health. Both progressives and conservatives would likely agree that a world with less depression, anxiety, and addiction would be a better world.
What if we directed AI research toward understanding and addressing the neurological and social roots of these issues? We might discover ways to reduce suffering while preserving the essential functions of our emotional systems.
There are the less obvious ways we could use the technological possibilities of the future to solve social and political conflicts, ways that seem irreconcilable today.
I propose a radical shift in our approach to societal problems. Instead of fighting over today’s limited solutions, let us use technology, such as AI, to envision and create a world 10, 20, or even 30 years from now, where these conflicts simply dissolve because we’ve transcended their underlying constraints.
The process begins by bringing diverse stakeholders together to envision their ideal world, setting aside current constraints.
Then we work backward, identifying the technological developments needed to make that world possible and directing research and development (R&D) accordingly.
Suppose that in the State of Israel opposing sides of the Right-Left and religious-secular divides are brought to the table to describe the societies they would love to see. There is just one rule: “You can only use positives in your conversation, negotiations, and mediations.”
A new approach
Instead of religious groups saying: “We don’t want people publicly desecrating the Shabbat,” they say, “We want a day of complete rest.”
Instead of secular groups saying, “We don’t want religious restrictions,” they say, “we want access to all services every day.” Then ask: Can we have both in 30 years? With automated services and advanced planning, perhaps we can, and perhaps we can alleviate a lot of built up hatred that develops from negating the desires of the other side.
The same could apply numerous other seemingly irreconcilable dilemmas between ethics, religion, identities, and freedoms.
This isn’t mere utopianism. It’s strategic direction-setting for research and development. By identifying our collective desires for the future, universal education, improved health, reduced violence, greater harmony among different groups – while maintaining the individuality and uniqueness of our own – we can shape the agenda of technological advancement toward solving these problems.
Consider the abortion debate in the US. The Right says: “We don’t want fetuses to die.” The Left says: “We want full control over our bodies.” These seem to be fundamentally opposed views. But what if, in, let’s say, 30 years, technology allows for both? Technology opens up new political possibilities.
Large democratic systems could not happen before revolutions in communication and transportation that allowed for meaningful nationwide voting.
If we work at it honestly, R&D may even bring viable solutions to intractable issues, such as the Israel-Palestine conflict.
At a simple level, technology can be developed to create increasingly targeted security to prevent terror attacks while allowing peaceful and law-abiding people to go about their daily business.
At a more fundamental level, a large part of the conflict stems from many Muslims sincerely believing that the whole land must be under Islamic control, while many Jews believe the opposite, that Israel is an inherently Jewish state with every right to Jewish self-determination.
What if we could reimagine political systems that are not tied to geography? Could technology help create a world where Palestinians are free “from the river to the sea,” Jews are free in their indigenous land, and everyone can live under the government they choose while security is ensured?
As more of life becomes virtual and automated, this type of thinking becomes increasingly plausible.
Suppose we all get around the table today and start to think about how this might look if there were no technological limits. In doing so, even before a single technological solution has been found, we will already have started to think collaboratively. Your needs and values need not undermine mine.
We can find solutions together as partners. Confidence-building can begin today.
This approach doesn’t mean we abandon addressing today’s pressing injustices. But it does offer a path forward, one that transcends the limitations of current political thinking.
The technology that will shape our future is being developed now. We need to ensure that it is directed toward creating a world where current seemingly irreconcilable conflicts no longer exist, not because one side has won but because we’ve all moved beyond the limitations that made them conflicts in the first place.
Thinking that way today can help channel funding and governmental priorities to producing a world in which everyone is a winner.
Bringing competing groups together to forge that vision can already help the rivals of yesterday to become collaborators and partners today, to forge the world of tomorrow.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-850243
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How Has Israel Reached Its Lowest Point Through Its High Court
By Akiva Spiegelman
April 16, 2025
Ever since Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu decided to end the term of the head of the Shin Bet (Israel Security Agency), Ronen Bar, the entire country has set into high gear of anarchy again, with each side believing that any given resolution will lead to the end of democracy.
To make matters worse, the hot potato was ceremoniously tossed to Israel’s Supreme Court – ironically not by Bar himself, who should have resigned shortly after his organization’s failure on October 7, but by multiple entities and organizations.
This led to an 11-hour discussion concluded by a resolution no side could fully accept.
The Supreme Court has been under constant criticism, especially during the past two years, partially due to the public’s dwindling support of its standings on matters that should have never reached its doorstep, including the current one.
The insistence to involve it in every topic by the likes of the Movement for Quality Government in Israel has created an entity plunged into controversy on an endless basis, effectively making it the babysitter of the State of Israel.
The current government has called to change this reality, to abolish the agenda set forward by former Supreme Court president Aharon Barak.
Unfortunately, this has in turn removed objectivity from the equation, making every major issue political from the moment it is discussed by the Supreme Court members.
Never worse timing
The discussion regarding Bar is the biggest hump in years, removing the prime minister’s prerogative to make personnel changes directly affecting a country at war. That being said, Netanyahu’s timing could not have been worse given the recent revelations of “Qatargate.”
It is safe to assume that firing Bar close to the October 7 massacre, or his own resignation, would be understood by the general public. Either way, the Supreme Court’s involvement in this procedure at the current point is nonproductive for all sides.
The displays seen during the discussion will be remembered as a low point, and due to technological developments, it was on display for all to see.
Following October 7, we all pledged “never again” and rightfully acknowledged our ability to stand stronger together. Discussions such as the one held yesterday do not serve either of these goals.
In order to truly move forward stronger as a nation, we must return to objectivity – not without necessary criticism when needed, but with a combined will to solve issues without absolutely destroying those we disagree with.
Leaving matters to public opinion is the ultimate way to achieve this – definitely not by a binding ruling that leaves all sides at a loss.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-850240
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How Can Israel Celebrate Its Victories When Hostages Remain in Captivity?
By Daniel M. Rosen
April 16, 2025
As Jewish people around the world gather to celebrate Passover, they commemorate the deliverance from slavery into freedom with hearts that are both full and heavy.
There are still 59 innocent souls held hostage by Hamas. Every single one of them is living a nightmare. The existence of even one hostage is a moral outrage and a national travesty.
Passover – as countless articles, podcasts, interviews and speeches remind us – is the holiday of freedom and people ought to be focused on the hostage’s lack of freedom at this time.
Notwithstanding, as tragic as the hostage crisis is, it must not be allowed to obscure the stunning, historic victory that Israel has achieved in recent months.
As we gather with our families this Passover we can benefit from a sense of gratitude and appreciation for the true deliverance of Israel and the Jewish people from the jaws of despair into the light of redemption and triumph.
This Passover, we can relate to the Israelites who left Egypt from slavery and were delivered into freedom more than at any other time in the last 50 years.
Over the last 18 months Jews have come to identify with the struggles and triumphs of previous generations not as a distant tale but in a very real way.
The pain of the hostages is real and must never be minimized.
The Jewish people embrace mixed emotions
At the same time, the Jewish people are currently experiencing an extraordinary, history-altering victory of epic proportions that Israel and. Let’s be clear: Israel has defeated a modern-day genocidal enemy, a trifecta explicitly committed to its annihilation.
An enemy powered, funded, and weaponized by a modern-day Haman – the Islamic Republic of Iran. And yet, through unparalleled resilience, sacrifice, and strategic brilliance, Israel has not only survived, it has prevailed and continues to prevail.
This is not hyperbole. In a recent talk, Elliot Brand, executive director of AIPAC, described a moment in time during October 2024 when a dark and paralyzing cloud fell over Israel.
He said, “There was doubt about whether Israel would recover, whether its enemies would escalate, and whether its people could ever feel safe again. Today, just months later, that cloud has lifted. What we’re witnessing now is the return of light, of pride, of power, and of purpose.”
We are witnessing a modern-day miracle and this deserves to be celebrated.
In many public conversations, especially outside Israel, there’s a growing reluctance to acknowledge this moment of triumph.
Some suggest the war should be paused or even ended for the sake of the hostages. Others warn that expressions of joy are inappropriate while even one Israeli remains in captivity.
People often talk about their “values” and urge surrendering the objectives of the war in favor of returning the hostages.
Naturally, when weighing Israel’s next strategic moves, the main focus should be on the current and future security of the 10 million Israelis living in the Jewish state and the 59 hostages still being held in Gaza.
However, it is not an admirable value to trade the future of those 10 million for that of 59 people. It is in fact illogical. That kind of moral confusion is not compassion, it’s chaos.
No military, no country, no people has ever sacrificed collective victory for individual pain, not because the individuals don’t matter, but because the welfare of the whole trumps the welfare of the few.
Our tradition teaches us to hold two truths at once. We must cry over suffering and celebrate over deliverance.
This Passover, let us do both.
Let us pray for the hostages, let us fight for their freedom, but let us also rejoice, unapologetically, in Israel’s strength, survival, and future.
This holiday presents an opportunity to share with all the generations the uniqueness of this time in this place: “Blessed are you, Lord our God, Ruler of the universe, who has given us life, sustained us, brought us to this moment.”
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-850233
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Trump's Israel Tariffs: What Was Left Unsaid in Netanyahu-Trump Meeting?
By Michael J. Salamon
April 16, 2025
In a move that has been sending ripples through international relations, US President Donald Trump initially wreaked stock market havoc by announcing wide-ranging tariffs against virtually every country and territory in the world.
Among those tariffs Trump announced and then flip-flopped about was a 17% tariff on Israel, citing alleged theft of United States secrets as the reason for the tariff amount.
However, the lack of clarity surrounding allegations of Israeli thievery of American secrets has left many scratching their heads.
The Israeli government, caught off guard by the accusation, has strongly denied any wrongdoing, emphasizing its history of transparency and cooperation with the United States.
Indeed, Israel has for many years cooperated in creating a variety of security and weaponry material, along with other hi-tech programs with the US.
In the wake of these developments, a crucial meeting between Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and President Trump took place in Washington last week. Yet, rather than providing clarity or resolution, the encounter left many questions unanswered.
The Netanyahu-Trump meeting was anticipated as a pivotal moment at which to address the escalating tensions. Observers hoped it would lay the foundation for diplomatic talks to resolve the tariff dispute.
However, instead of a robust dialogue on this pressing issue, the meeting was overshadowed by other agenda items. The two leaders discussed a range of topics, from regional security concerns to economic cooperation, as well as Trump flattering Turkey’s President Tayyip Erdogan and proposing direct talks with Iran for nuclear power, but the contentious tariff issue was conspicuously absent from the forefront of their discussions.
A puzzling omission
This omission has left analysts and diplomats puzzled. Not surprisingly, Netanyahu remained mostly quiet. Was it a strategic decision to avoid confrontation?
Or perhaps a diplomatic oversight? Whatever the reason, the absence of any concrete discussion on the tariff has left a void in the conversation, one that continues to fuel speculation and concern.
Economic analysts have been quick to weigh in on the potential repercussions of the tariff. Opinions are divided, with many predicting increased costs for consumers and businesses reliant on Israeli imports, while others see it as an opportunity for domestic industries to step in and fill the gap.
The uncertainty surrounding the tariff’s future – what Trump will decide to do in 90 days – only adds to the complexity of the situation.
The international community is watching closely, with many nations concerned about the broader implications for global trade and security alliances.
The US-Israel relationship has long been a cornerstone of Middle Eastern diplomacy, and any strain could have far-reaching consequences. Yet, without a clear path forward, the situation remains precarious not just for Israel, nor the Middle East, but for the entire world.
What did not happen during the Netanyahu-Trump meeting is as telling as what did. The lack of a direct conversation about the tariff suggests a hesitancy, perhaps from both sides, not often seen, to engage in a potentially contentious debate.
This hesitancy could be attributed to various factors, including political pressures – both domestic and international – and perhaps a strategy to address the issue through backchannel negotiations.
As the situation develops, the need for diplomatic engagement becomes increasingly urgent.
The coming weeks may bring further negotiations or adjustments to the tariff policy, and the US president’s vision of the Middle East, depending on the outcomes of these quiet efforts and the political dynamics in both countries.
Watchful waiting
For now, the international community remains in a state of watchful waiting. The US and Israel have a long history of overcoming challenges through dialogue and cooperation.
Yet, the absence of a direct discussion on the tariff during the key Washington meeting and the digression to Turkey and Iran is a reminder of the complexities and nuances that define international relations.
In the end, what did not happen during the Netanyahu-Trump meeting might prove to be as significant as any agreements or public statements that were made.
As both nations navigate this diplomatic minefield, created by the imposed economic rigidity, the hope is that dialogue and cooperation will eventually prevail, leading to a resolution that upholds the integrity of the longstanding partnership.
https://www.jpost.com/opinion/article-850236
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The Crux of Negotiations: Are Iran's Ballistic Missiles More Dangerous Than Its Nuclear Programme?
By Issam Naaman
April 15, 2025
Donald Trump has been, and will remain, an unpredictable man. He is a master of surprises at every level. Before announcing his major tariff increases for all imports to the US from all exporting countries worldwide, he had publicly begun strengthening Israel militarily with a generous shipment of the advanced THAAD missile system. He also gathered a massive naval and air force in the Middle East and the Indian Ocean, including numerous destroyers, aircraft carriers and deadly B-52 bombers. He signalled to the world that he would develop America’s attack on Yemen, on both its army and its people, and turn it into a devastating war, in partnership with Israel against Iran.
Iran’s top leadership had refused to respond to Trump’s threatening request for direct negotiations over its nuclear programme. Trump surprised the world, especially his friend and White House guest, Benjamin Netanyahu, by announcing the initiation of negotiations with Iran, beginning in the Sultanate of Oman on 12 April. Netanyahu, a tireless advocate of waging war against Iran, was stunned by what he had just heard and tried to soften the blow with hushed words that Israeli media described as reflecting his disappointment and humiliation. Netanyahu said, “We’re both united in the goal that Iran does not get nuclear weapons,” as he sat alongside the US President, adding, “If it can be done diplomatically, in a full way, the way it was done in Libya, I think that would be a good thing.”
However, there are those in Israel who still hope that Trump will later use his devastating war on Yemen as a model for what he can do to Iran, more forcefully and more extensively, if it refuses to comply with his many inflexible demands. How? By shifting from the defensive response strategy adopted by the administration of former US President Joe Biden to an offensive deterrence strategy. Isn’t this what Trump and his aides threatened Iran with on the eve of the start of negotiations in Oman? Furthermore, there is another question: What do Washington and Tehran want in the negotiations? Trump wants to prevent Iran from possessing a nuclear weapon. Tehran wants the negotiations to be limited to discussing the nuclear issue alone, but it is clear from the statements of the US President and his aides that Washington seeks to expand the scope of the negotiations to include, in addition to the nuclear issue, Iran’s policy in the region, particularly its support for the Houthis in Yemen and its programme to build and develop long-range ballistic missiles. While Tel Aviv deliberately ignores the danger of the ballistic missiles it suffered during Iran’s response to its recent aggression, its strategic experts realise that the crux of the negotiations is Iran’s programme to build and develop ballistic missiles, which are more dangerous to Israel (and perhaps to the US, as well) than its nuclear programme. Tehran’s (presumed) success in developing a nuclear bomb would not prompt it to use it in war for three significant reasons:
First, because Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has issued a fatwa prohibiting its manufacture or use, as the extreme deadliness and indiscriminate destruction it would cause are morally and religiously prohibited. Arabs, both Muslims and Christians, who live in the Zionist entity that has existed since 1948, as well as in the rest of the Occupied Palestinian Territories, would certainly suffer enormous human and physical damage if nuclear weapons were used.
Second, because the use of nuclear weapons would cause immense harm and damage to both warring parties using them, greatly limiting its legitimacy and effectiveness.
Third, because the US is far more powerful when it comes to nuclear weapons than Iran, and it would cause Iran immeasurable damage compared to the US. What further need or benefit would there be for using this deadly weapon?
Compared to nuclear weapons, long-range ballistic missiles appear to be more effective, more destructive, and even more dangerous to Israel than nuclear weapons. Why? Because the occupying entity also will not use nuclear weapons for the reasons mentioned above. Furthermore, it is inconceivable that the US would use them on its behalf, knowing that Iran could use its ballistic missiles to retaliate forcefully, causing massive human and material damage to all US military bases in West Asia, not to mention the devastating damage that would be inflicted on the Zionist entity itself. Despite the positive impressions expressed by both the Iranian and American sides after their first meeting last Saturday to determine the course of negotiations, most observers in Tehran, Tel Aviv and Washington tend to doubt the success of the ongoing negotiations in Oman. They believe they will be prolonged for several reasons, not least of which is the growing negative reactions to the tariff war launched by Trump against most exporting countries, and his need to contain the reactions in order to reduce its negative repercussions on the US and the rest of the world. However, another group of observers have not ruled out the possibility of Washington and Tehran possibly reaching a compromise involving freezing the Iranian nuclear programme, particularly its high-percentage enrichment of uranium, necessary for the manufacture of nuclear bombs. This would satisfy Iran, as this compromise would keep its peaceful nuclear programme unrestricted, which is its primary concern. It also would not affect its right to develop its long-range ballistic missile programme and would lift the unjust US economic sanctions imposed on it.
This compromise would also satisfy the US, as its main concern is that Iran never possesses nuclear weapons, by Iran accepting strict monitoring and control mechanisms. It would also allow it to attract Iranian investment in the US economy. As for Israel, whose primary concern is dismantling the entire Iranian nuclear infrastructure, this compromise would leave it empty-handed. A question remains for the future: What if the US-Iranian negotiations in Oman fail, and what repercussions will it have on the Arab-Israeli conflict?
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20250415-the-crux-of-negotiations-are-irans-ballistic-missiles-more-dangerous-than-its-nuclear-programme/
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Funding The PA Is for The Benefit of Israel and The EU, Not The Palestinians
By Ramona Wadi
April 15, 2025
Palestinian Authority leader Mahmoud Abbas met with the EU’s High Representative for Foreign Affairs and Security Policy, Kaja Kallas, in March. The meeting was replete with the usual hyperbole that still clings to the defunct two-state paradigm, the PA’s reform and funding for this purpose.
Yesterday, Reuters reported that the EU will be funding the PA with a three-year package worth $1.8 billion to support reform. According to European Commissioner for the Mediterranean Dubravka Suica, “We want them to reform themselves because without reforming, they won’t be strong enough and credible in order to be an interlocutor, not for only for us, but an interlocutor also for Israel.”
It only spells one thing clearly: the EU wants the PA to be strong enough to act against the Palestinian people and prevent them from being their own interlocutors in a political process that concerns them much more than the PA.
Speaking about the EU funding for the PA, Kallas said, “This will reinforce the PA’s ability to meet the needs of the Palestinian people in the West Bank and prepare it to return to govern Gaza once conditions allow.” No time frames, of course, because the conditions will always depend on Israel. Funding buys time for Israel’s genocide in Gaza. Meanwhile, the PA, which has not only neglected the needs of Palestinians in the occupied West Bank, but also exacerbated their humanitarian and political neglect as evidenced in Jenin, for example, can rest assured of some more years of EU support. That is, as long as the humanitarian paradigm remains relevant to the illusory state-building funded by Brussels.
From the allocated budget, the UN Relief and Works Agency for Palestine Refugees (UNRWA) will receive €82 million per year.
The most telling clause in the European Commission’s statement detailing its assistance is found right at the end. “This designation shall not be construed as recognition of a State of Palestine and is without prejudice to the individual positions of the Member States on this issue.”
France’s announcement that it might recognise the State of Palestine by June this year, symbolic as the gesture is, only shows the EC’s urge to detach itself from all possibilities, no matter how remote, of Palestinian independence. Which brings one back to the big question:
Funding a Palestinian entity for Israeli and EU purposes does not bode well for Palestinians, who are still only spoken of in terms of humanitarian matters. The political purpose is reserved only for Israel’s allies, the PA being one of them, as seen in many instances of its collaboration with the occupation state.
But Western diplomats would do well to recall that one major democratic implementation postponed repeatedly by Abbas – democratic legislative and presidential elections – has not featured once in the EU’s vision of a post-war Gaza, determined as it is to have the PA take over political authority in the enclave and bring Palestinians under different forms of misery. How scared is the EU of having Palestinians being allowed to vote freely and possibly electing alternatives that have nothing to do with the current Fatah-Hamas bipolarisation? Funding the PA indeed serves a purpose; that of destroying Palestinian democracy.
https://www.middleeastmonitor.com/20250415-funding-the-pa-is-for-the-benefit-of-israel-and-the-eu-not-the-palestinians/
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Gaza’s Impossible Choice: Extermination or Forced Transfer
Osama Al-Sharif
April 15, 2025
The second chapter of Israel’s war on Gaza, which Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu launched after the end of the first phase of the ceasefire agreement last month, is not about returning the Israeli captives, alive or dead. The Israeli public knows this by now, and so do thousands of Israeli reservists who, for the first time in the history of the state, are refusing to report for duty.
The second chapter of the war is also not about destroying Hamas, as Netanyahu claims. Much of the militant group’s military capacity had been destroyed many months before. The movement has been decapitated both militarily and politically. This is the conclusion of many of Israel’s generals. And the resumption of the war is not about reoccupying the entire enclave. That is a secondary objective.
Netanyahu is now seeking to fulfill a more sinister goal — the forced transfer of millions of Palestinians in Gaza. By cutting off all kinds of aid for more than a month now, by indiscriminately bombing tent camps to kill as many civilians as possible, and forcing hundreds of thousands of hapless people to move to the beaches of Gaza at Al-Mawasi, Israel is physically choking off the Palestinians and forcing them to embrace the only choice they have if they want to stay alive: leave.
We do not know what happened during Netanyahu’s unscheduled and rushed visit to the White House two weeks ago. Israeli reports suggest that the Israeli leader was summoned to meet President Donald Trump, but not to talk about recently imposed US tariffs on Israeli products — and it now seems that it was not to suspend the renewed attacks on Gaza. The talks failed to resolve the deadlock regarding the release of Israeli captives held by Hamas.
Trump wanted to inform Netanyahu that the US has decided to negotiate with Iran to reach a new agreement regarding Tehran’s nuclear program. Netanyahu was told to stay put and not interfere or disrupt the new round of negotiations. The Israeli media announced that a stunned Netanyahu left Washington empty-handed.
But the Israeli leader did not leave empty-handed. He was not told by the Americans to end the war in Gaza or to embrace a new ceasefire deal. In fact, after his return to Israel, Netanyahu told Israelis that he was going to win the war and bring the hostages back. How to achieve both remains unclear. Indeed, tens of thousands of Israelis who protested last Saturday do not believe him. And now, while mired in legal and political challenges, Netanyahu is facing an unprecedented mutiny in the armed forces.
Still, he sees a rare opportunity to carry out the scheme of all time: to empty Gaza of its inhabitants and reclaim the enclave. His army has leveled the southern governorate of Rafah and is now moving into parts of Khan Younis. His Minister of Defense, Israel Katz, boasts that Israel has now created buffer zones in all of northern Gaza, and has created a new military corridor in the south that has reduced the enclave’s area by one-third. There is more to come, he says. Katz claims these buffer zones — created through the ethnic cleansing of Palestinians — are meant to force Hamas into accepting a deal to return the captives.
Ironically, Hamas made such an offer weeks ago. More recently, in Cairo, Hamas said that it was willing to free all Israeli captives in return for ending the war and the complete withdrawal of Israel. Netanyahu said no.
Israel is moving from carrying out a genocidal war to total extermination. And why not? It has the backing of the US president and most US lawmakers. Instead of calling on a wanted war criminal to cease, the US is welcoming Netanyahu with open arms. Furthermore, those who dare investigate Israel for war crimes and genocide, such as the International Criminal Court and the International Court of Justice, are threatened with sanctions.
The second chapter of the Gaza war is about the threat of extermination to force millions to leave. The starvation, the indiscriminate bombings, the destruction of hospitals, the bombing of tents to kill as many civilians as possible, the leveling of entire governorates, and the forced displacement of hundreds of thousands will undoubtedly achieve that egregious objective.
What is mind-boggling is that the world knows exactly what the end game in Gaza is about. Still, the failure to stop this crime of the century is astounding. The world has been unable to force Israel to allow humanitarian aid into Gaza for weeks now. The UN Security Council is deaf and blind, allowing the deliberate execution of 15 medics by Israel to go unpunished. The ICC and the ICJ have become silent witnesses to this bloodbath.
The case against what Israel is doing in Gaza is impossible to defend or justify. And yet, while millions protest weekly around the world against the genocide, no government has dared challenge or punish Israel.
Never mind that international humanitarian law, the Geneva Conventions, the laws of war, and Security Council resolutions have all been trampled by a rogue regime. Never mind that all governments are now directly or indirectly made into accessories in this crime of the century. The outcome of this bloody saga will haunt the world for decades.
Israel may succeed in forcing an exhausted, starving, and grieving population to leave Gaza, not by free choice, but to survive. How and where will they go? Netanyahu has no answer, nor does he care. He will throw the fate of millions at the feet of the world. This is a blemished insult to humanity.
Netanyahu’s sinister scheme can still be stopped. But what has been lacking so far is the resolve of world leaders. There is no indication that the current trajectory will change. Palestinians in Gaza are now at the mercy of a ruthless killer.
https://www.arabnews.com/node/2597131
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